Wednesday, January 5, 2011

Must... Stop... Eating... Junk...

Okay, the house has been cleaned up so now it's time to tackle a few other priorities...

After a great summer of eating better I managed to get within five pounds of my goal weight but I've been stalled out for the last three months or so.

Could it be the large bowl of popcorn with real butter and lots of salt that I must eat whenever we watch a movie?

Could it be the Christmas cookies we consumed last month?

Could it be the countless loaves of Cranberry Bread that were baked for family, neighbors, friends (and us!)?

Could it be the Christmas candy that entered the house during the holidays and is still present (although rapidly disappearing, thanks to yours truly and others who shall remain anonymous...)?

Well, if I'm honest, it's probably a little bit of everything I've listed above. Thankfully, I didn't gain weight even with all the snacking and junk I've been eating, but I don't like feeling the way I do when I don't eat properly. I'd also like to get rid of the last five pounds and I need to make some changes for that to happen.

With that in mind, here are my eating and exercise goals:

- Limit myself to 20 grams of sugar per day

- Limit myself to 6 carb servings per day

- Begin baking bread for family via "Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day"

- Healthy meal planning and preparing

- Drink at least 8 (12 oz.) glasses of water daily

- Sleep 7-8 hours per night

- Exercise 300 minutes weekly (roughly 45 minutes 6 x week)

- Begin lifting weights

An ambitious list, to be sure, but one worth striving for. I'm not planning on accomplishing everything immediately or even everyday, but hope to find a balance that works for our family. Now that I've written it down and posted it publicly I will have to be accountable so don't be afraid to ask me how I'm doing.

Here's to a happy HEALTHY new beginning of a new year. Make your own goals and join me, it's more fun with a friend!

I told Leah she couldn't tell you about my bad word :) It is funny but whenI wrote that post it was her I thought about & almost didn't post it. But as I said I couldn't resist. :)

When I got on a diet I always save enough calories for a huge bowl of the fat free butter microwave popcorn but I always put in 1/4 cup of plain M&Ms ...it sure makes a little chocolate go a looooong way :) When this baby comes I am gonna need to do some MAJOR dieting...glad I will still have a few months before summer! Hope your efforts go easy!

I'm so glad that you got the cookbook. I really hope you love it too. The only recipe we've tried from there that the kids did not like was the "fragrant lentil soup". Other than that, it's been filled with successes for the whole family!